Cabinet



H. M. PIKER Dec. 1, 1959 CABINET 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 25, 1957 INVENTOR. H BERT M. PIKER Dec. 1, 1959 H. M. PIKER 2,915,352

CABINET Filed April 25, 1957 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR. l/ERBEKT M, PIKER W a, @w

United States Patent "ice a CABINET Herbert M. Piker, Wyoming, 'Ohio, assignor to The Hamilton Skotch Corporation, Hamilton, Ohio, a conporation of Ohio 1 Application April 25, 1957, Serial No. 655,117 1 Claims. or. 312-257 a rigid construction without the use of fastening means,

such as screws, bolts and nuts, spot welding and the like.

A further object of the present invention is the provision of a storage cabinet assembled completely from stamped sheet metal parts or equivalent castings whichare so designed and related to one another that upon assembly results in a rigid construction. r

A further object of this invention is the provision of a storage cabinetthat includes a plurality of shelves which cooperate with an enclosing shell the component parts of which are retained in operative positions, with out extraneous securing means and which component parts may be rearranged with respect to one another for obtaining adjustable spacing, for example, of the shelves.

A further object of the present invention is the provision of a storage cabinet formed of sheet metal stamp-' ings or correspondingly shaped castings certain of which component parts are duplicates of one another and all component parts cooperating in the assembly of. the said cabinet. Y

A still further and specific object of the present invention is the provision of a cabinet assembled from preformed elements secured to one another through the cooperation of' said elements and without the use of other fastening means wherefore said. elements may be completely surface finished by painting, enameling or the like before assembly.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent by reference to the following specification considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings forming a part thereof, and it is to be understood that any modifications may be made in the exact structural details there shown and described, within the scope, of theappended claims, without departing from or exceeding the spirit of the invention.

In the drawings: o

Fig. 1.is a front elevational view of the complete cabinet of the present invention.

,Fig. 2 is arear or back elevational view of the cabinet of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an end elevational view of the complete cabinetas seen, for example, from the left-hand end of Fig. '1. v C f 1 Fig'. '4 ,is' a vertical sectional view throughthe ,assemv bled cabinet as seen fromline 4-4 on Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view of the assembled cabinet as seen from line 5-5 on- Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary horizontal sectional view through the cabinet as seen from line 6--6 on Fig. 4.

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary horizontal sectional view through a forward corner of the cabinet as seen from line 77 on Fig. 4.

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of a shell forming the back, top and bottom of the cabinet with a portion of the top removed for clearance in illustration.

Fig. 9 is a perspective view of the cabinet ends for closing the ends of the shell of Fig. 8. d

Fig. 10 is a perspective view of a shelf which 00- operates with the .shell and ends in producing the complete cabinet.

Throughout the several viewsof the drawings similar reference characters are employed to denote the same or similar parts.

As was noted above the cabinet of the present invention comprises a main shell to which is secured end members, as a right-hand and a left-hand end wall for the-cabinet, and two or more shelves, one of which forms an inner bottom, which are duplicates of one another and cooperate with the shell and end walls in producing the cabinet and on which shelves may be disposed slidable con ainers or drawers to complete the device.

The cabinet shell 15. as particularly illustrated in Fig. 8, is formed of a single sheet of metal, preferably sheet steel, and comprises a back '16 having integral and normal thereto at its upper end a top 17. Similarly the back 16. has at its lower end, integral therewith and normal thereto, the bottom 18. The lateral edges of the back are upset to form right angle flanges 19 each hav-:

ing its upper and lower ends biased as at 20 and 21. The top 17 has its lateral edges depending as flanges 22 each 'with its'rear end biased to cooperate with the upper bias 20 ofthe back flange 19. Again, similarly, the bottom 18 has its lateral edges upset to form right angle flanges-23 each of which has its rear end biased to cooperate with the lower bias 21 of the flanges.19..

The forward edge of the shell top 17 is formed as a channel 24 which includes a downwardly depending front flange 25 and an inwardly extending 'top flange 26 with the ends of the front flange 25 abutting the down-turned flanges 22 while the top flange 26 is cut short o-f-the end flanges as is clearly illustrated for the bottom flanges and presently to be described in detail.

The shell bottom 18 similar to the shell top 17 is provided at its forward end with a channel 27 comprising an upstanding flange 28 and an in-turned bottom flange 29. As illustrated in Fig. 8 the ends of the upstanding flange 28 are in abutment with the flanges 23 while the ends of the bottom flange 29 are inwardly spaced from said flanges 23, as indicated at'30 and 31, for a purpose subsequently to be made clear.

The right and left hand ends are substantially identical and it is deemed sufficient it but one of them be described in detail which, as illustrated in Fig. 9, is identified by the reference numeral 32 and comprises the cabinet and wall or panel 33 having, for the sake of reinforcernent, an outwardly formed rib 34 located in parallelism with, and inwardly of, the upper and lower-edges and the rear edge of the end panel 33. The rear edge the said end wall panel is upset to provide a channel 37 vertically of said end wall. It should be noted that for the sake of clearness, Fig. 9 showsthe flange 36 at the D i atented Dec. 1,, 195,9.

lower end of the end wall which, in reality, is the upper end thereof.

The channel 37 comprises a laterally extending flange 38 and an inwardly extending flange 39, with the flange 38 at its upper and lower ends provided with a laterally projecting finger 40 and 41, respectively, of a width substantially equal to the width of the channel 24 between the top 17 and its inwardly projecting flange 26 and the bottom channel 27 between the bottom 18 and its inwardly projecting flange 29 and within which channels said fingers 40 and 41 are respectively received. The cabinet end wall channel flange 39, which is normal to the flange 38 and parallel with the panel or body portion 33 of the cabinet'end is formed of the material between the fingers 40 and 41. The said inwardly projecting flange 39 is provided with one or more semi-circular seats or notches 42; there being shown in the drawings three such notches or seats since the cabinet illustrated has three shelves while if more or fewer shelves are required the number of notches or seats would be correspondingly varied.

Again, as noted above, the shelves and inner bottom are identical in construction and it is deemed suflicient if but one of them be described in detail. Accordingly, and as illustrated in Fig. 10, the shelf 43 comprises a main or body portion 44 having its rear end downturned to form a depending flange 45. For assembly purposes the flange 45 has its ends 46 and 47 cut short of the ends of the shelf a distance corresponding to the depth of the cabinet end members back flanges 35. The body portion 44 of the shelf has its forward end rolled as at 48 with said roll being downwardly of the shelf or in the same'direction as the flange 45 extends with respect to the upper surface of the shelf. The lateral ends of the shelf body portion 44 are similarly rolled as at 49 and 50 with said rolls extending in the opposite direction from the roll 48 or upwardly of the upper sur face' of the shelf. The roll 48 is formed to a radius similar to the radius of the semi-circular notches or seats 42 since they are interfitted with one another as will subsequently be made clear. The end rolls 49 and 50 are formed to a diameter substantially equal to the width of the channels 37 formed behind the end walls inwardly projecting flanges 39 and the body portion or panel 33 of the said end walls.

As illustrated in Figs. 2 and 8, for example, the shell back 16 is provided with one or more semi-circular cuts 51 and the material of said back within each cut 51 is bent inwardly to form a hook comprising a base 52 and an upstanding portion 53. The said hooks 5253 are formed in one or more horizontal rows each upwardly spaced from one another and from the bottom 18 a similar distance and there are as many rows of hooks as there are shelves in the cabinet and since the cabinet illustrated in the drawings comprises three shelves there are three rows of hooks as illustrated in Fig. 2.

In practice the shell 15 has first assembled therewith the end walls 32 and which end walls are sequentially mounted in position by arranging the tongues or fingers 40 and 41, at the front side thereof, to be aligned with the channels 27 and 37 of the front ends of the shell top and bottom, whereupon the rear edges of the said end Walls are respectively pushed along the inner surface of the shell back 16 until the said end walls back edges and the upper and lower edges thereof are, respectively, in solid face contact with the flanges 19, 22 and 23, respectively, of the opposite ends of the shell back 16, top 17 and bottom 18. After the said cabinet end walls are mounted in position all of the shelves 43 are disposed within the shell, which can be effected, by inserting the shelves diagonally of the open front of the cabinet, and all of the shelves are superimposed on one another beneath the top, whereupon the lowermost of said shelves is arranged to have its front edge roll 48 inserted in the shell bottom channel 27 and the said shelf pushed downwardly until its back flange 45 rests on the shell bottom 18 at the rear thereof. At this time the said back flange 45 will have its end edges 46 and 47 disposed substantially in contact with the free edges of the end walls back flanges 35, as illustrated for one end of one shelf in Fig. 6.

The said shelf now forms the inner bottom as illustrated in Fig. 4 and has its upper surface in the plane of 7 the upper surface of the shell bottom inwardly projecting ment is provided.

Each of the shelves is in turn mounted in operative position starting with the lower-most shelf and working upwardly of the cabinet, it being understood that if but one shelf is employed this is the only shelf to be mounted. In mounting the shelves in operative position the front roll 48 of each shelf is mounted in its aligned semi-circular notches or seats 42 in the cabinet end walls at the forward side thereof whereuponthe shelves are downwardly actuated with said notches or semi-circular seats 42 as the axis of actuation of the shelves until the back flanges 45 thereof, respectively, engages behind its hooks 5253 inwardly formed of the back 16 and in horizontal alignment with or in the horizontal plane of the notches or semi-circular seats 42. At this time the end rolls 49 and 50 are disposed in the channels 37 of the end walls behind the flanges 39 so that said rolls are in alignment with the surfaces of the said flanges 39 to provide smooth end wall abutments for said shelves with the said end walls inwardly projecting flanges 39. The length of the shelves and inner bottom is such that a snug fit is effected with the end walls for positively retaining the end walls in operative positions with no play between the parts. a snug fit between the shell back 16 and semi-circular notches or seats 42 that no play exists between the parts. From the foregoing it will be noted that even though the cabinet is formed of sheet metal stampings with inwardly projecting flanges upwardly of the bottom and inwardly of the endsno obstruction is afforded by said flanges to the sliding of an element on the shelves or the bottom of the cabinet. It should be noted that the reinforcing rib 34 of the cabinet end walls has its outer edge so positioned as to substantially abut the free edges of the shell back, top and bottom flanges 19, 22 and 23, respectively, as clearly illustrated in Figs. 3 and 6.

The cabinet has been particularly designed to receive on each shelf one or more drawers and which drawers are illustrated in elevation at 54 in Fig. 1 and are illustrated in phantom lines in the other views so as not to obstruct the construction of the cabinet itself. As particularly illustrated in Fig. 4 the upper surface of the inner bottom is substantially flush with the upper surface of the bottom flange 29 while as illustrated in Fig. 6 the inner edge or surface of the end roll 49 is flush with the inner surface of end wall inwardly projecting flange 39 and since each drawer 54 has a width which when combined is less than the width of the cabinet front opening they may be individually actuated with respect to the inner bottom and the shelves without interfering with one another or being interfered with by the cabinet construction.

It will be obvious from Fig. 4 that there is a space beneath each shelf behind its front roll 48 and each of the drawers 54 is provided with a lug 55 that upstands from the rear wall thereof that is normally disposed in said space. Said upstanding lugs of said drawers engage with the rear surface of the front roll of the shelf above The width of the shelves is likewise 5. it to prevent inadvertent complete withdrawal of the drawer. Each drawer, however, may be upwardly tilted just before complete withdrawal to thereby completely withdraw the drawer bottom, and then lower the lug to be outward of the cabinet.

The cabinet of the present invention is shipped in individual cartons and while the parts are retained in their operative positions by the cooperation thereof they, particularly the shelves, may be displaced if jarred or roughly handled in an upside down position. As illustrated in the drawings, and set out above, the small space between the tops of the drawers and the under surface of the shelves prevents this displacement of the shelves regardless how handled.

From the foregoing it will be noted that the cabinet is completely assembled and the parts secured in operative position with respect to one another without the use of any extraneous fastening means such as screws, bolts and nuts, welding, or the like.

What is claimed is: v

1. A cabinet of the class described comprising a shell including a back, a top and a bottom, inwardly projecting flanges from each end of said shell back, top and bottom, separate end walls, one at each end of the shell, in operative positions and, respectively, in face contact with the inner'surfaces of said shell back, top'and bottom flanges at its end of said shell, a shelf of a length substantially equal' to the spacing of the end Walls from one another when in face contact with their shell back, top and bottom end flanges with said shelf between and in end contact with said end walls and forwardly extending with respect to said shell back, and means on said shell back and end walls cooperating with the shelf and locking the shelf and end walls in operative positions.

- 2. A cabinet of the class described comprising a shell including a back, a top and a bottom, inwardly projecting flanges from each end of said shell back, top and bottom, separate end walls each including a rear edge, a top edge, a bottom edge and a front edge, one at each end of the shell, in operative position and, respectively, with their rear, top and bottom edges in face contact with said shell back, top and bottom flanges, said end walls at their front edges each having an inwardly projecting flange, said end Walls inwardly projecting flanges each having a notch formed therein in alignment with one another, and a shelf of a length substantially equal to the spacing of the end walls from one another when in face contact with its shell back, top and bottom end flanges with said shelf between and in end contact with said end walls and with its forward end disposed in the end wall notches for positioning and retaining same in position, and additional means for supporting the shelf rear end retaining same in position and with said shelf holding said end walls in face contact with the shell back, top and bottom inwardly projecting end flanges.

3. A cabinet of the class described comprising a shell including a back, a top and a bottom, inwardly projecting flanges from each end of said shell back, top and bottom, separate end walls, one at each end of the shell, respectively, in face contact with said shell back, top and bottom flanges, a shelf between said end walls and forwardly extending with respect to said shell back and means on said shell and end walls cooperating with the shelf and locking the shelf and end walls in operative positions, said end Walls at their free ends each having an inwardly projecting flange, said end walls inwardly flanges each having in alignment with one another a notch, a shelf between said end walls having its forward end disposed in the end wall notches for retaining same in position and for holding said end walls in face contact with the shell back, top and bottom inwardly projecting end flanges, and means on said shell back for supporting the rear end of said shelf.

4. A cabinet of the class described comprising a lJ-shaped shell formed from a single piece of material and including a back, atop and a bottom, said shell back;

at its forward end a U-shaped channel, separate endwalls, one at each end of the shell in operative position and, respectively, in face contact with said shell back,

top and bottom flanges at its end of the said shell, each end wall having at its forward corners inwardly projecting fingers respectively located in the shell top and bottom channels, said end walls each having formed therein an outwardly projecting bead engaged by the free edges of the shell back, top and bottom inwardly projecting flanges, a shelf of alength substantially equal to the spacing of the end walls from one another when in face contact with its shell back, top and bottom flanges with said shelf between and in end contact with said end walls forwardly extending with respect to the shell back,

and means on said shell and end walls cooperating with the shelf for locking the shelf and end walls in operative positions.

5. A cabinet of the class described comprising a U-shaped shell formed from a single piece of material and including a back, a top and a bottom, said she l back,

top and bottom having at each end thereof an inwardly projecting flange and said top and bottom each having at its forward end a U-shaped channel, separate end walls, one at each'end of the shell, each having at its forward corners inwardly projecting fingers respectively located in the shell top and bottom channel, said end walls each having formed therein an outwardly projecting rib engaged by the free edges of the shell back, top and bottom inwardly projecting flanges, a shelf of a length substantially equal to the spacing of the end walls from one another when in face contact with its shell back, top and bottom flanges with said shelf between and in end contact with said end walls and forwardly extending with respect to the shell back, said end walls each'being provided with a channel formed of the said end walls,

a forward flange extending toward one another and parallel with the shell back and an inwardly projecting flange, said end walls inwardly projecting flanges having aligned notches receiving and positioning the forward end of the shelf, and cooperating means on the shell back and shelf rear end for securing the shelf rear end in operative position.

6. A cabinet of the class described comprising a U-shaped shell formed from a single piece of material and including a back, a top and a bottom, said shell back,

top and bottom having at each end thereof an inwardly projecting flange and said top and bottom each having at its forward end a U-shaped channel, separatefend walls, one at each end of the shell, each having at its forward corners inwardly projecting fingers respectively located in the shell top and bottom channels, said end walls each having formed therein an outwardly projec'ting rib engaged'by the free edges of the shell back, top and bottom inwardly projecting flanges, a shelf between said end walls and forwardly extending with-respect to the shell back, said end walls each being provided with a channel formed of the said end walls, a forward flange extending toward one another and parallel with the shell back and an inwardly projecting flange, said end walls inwardly projecting flanges having aligned notches receiving and positioning the forward end of the shelf, a depending flange from the shelf rear end, and a hook inwardly formed from said shell back receiving said shelf rear flange.

7. A cabinet of the class described comprising a U-shaped shell formed from a single piece of material and including a back, a top and a bottom, said shell back, top and bottom having at each end thereof an inwardly projecting flange and said top and bottom each having at its forward end a U-shaped channel, separate end walls, one at each end of the shell, each having at its forward corners inwardly projecting fingers respectively located in the shell top and bottom channels, said end walls each having formed therein an outwardly projecting rib engaged by the free edges of the shell back, top and bottom inwardly projecting flanges, a shelf between said end walls and forwardly extending with respect to the shell back, said end walls each being provided with a channel formed of the said end walls, a forward flange extending toward one another and parallel with the shell back and an inwardly projecting flange, said end walls inwardly projecting flanges each having a semi-circular notch formed therein in alignment with one another, sa'id shelf having formed at its forward end a bead disposed in said semi-circular notches for positioning the same, and cooperating means on said shelf rear end and shell back for locking the shelf in operative position.

8. A cabinet of the class described comprising a U-shaped shell formed from a single piece of material and including a back, atop and a bottom, said shell back, top and bottom having at each end thereof an inwardly projecting flange and said top and bottom each having at its forward end a U-shaped channel, separate end walls, one at each end of the shell, each having at its forward corners inwardly projecting fingers respectively located in the shell top and bottom channels, said end walls each having formed therein an outwardly projecting bead engaged by the free edges of the shell back, top and bottom inwardly projecting flanges, a shelf between said end walls and forwardly extending with respect to the shell back, said end walls each being provided with a channel formed of the said end walls, a forward flange extending toward one another parallel with the shell back and an inwardly projecting flange, said end walls inwardly projecting flanges each having a semi-circular notch formed therein in alignment with one another, said shelf having formed at its forward end a bead disposed in said semi-circular notches for positioning the same, cooperating means on said shelf rear end and shell back for locking the shelf in operative position, and said shelf having at its right and left ends a bead to a diameter substantially equal to the end walls forward end channels so that the inwardly projecting flanges of said channels are aligned with said shelf ends beads.

9. A cabinet of the class described comprising a shell formed from a single piece of material substantially U-shaped in vertical cross section and including a back, a top and a bottom, said shell top, back and bottom having at each end thereof an inwardly projecting flange and said top and bottom each having at its forward end a U-shaped channel, separate end walls, one at each end of the shell, each having at its forward corners inwardly projecting fingers respectively located in the shell top and bottom channels, said end walls each being provided at its forward end with a U-shaped channel formed of the said end walls, a forward flange extending toward one another and parallel with the shell back and an inwardly projecting flange from said forward flange, said end walls channels inwardly projecting flanges each having a plurality of semi-circular notches formed therein with said notches respectively in said flanges aligned with one another in sets, a plurality of shelves between the end walls each having a substantially circular bead at its forward end and respectively disposed in an aligned set of semi-circular notches, each shelf extending rearwardly and having a depending flange at its rear end in face contact with the shell back, said shell back having a plurality of lines of aligned hooks inwardly projecting therefrom with each line of books receiving a shelf depending flange, an inner bottom disposed between said cabinet ends and having a substantially circular head at its forward end disposed in the shell bottom channel and with said inner bottom having a depending flange in face contact with the shell back depending to the shell bottom, and said inner bottom and shelves each having its lateral ends each formed as a substantially circular bead on the upper surface thereof and to a diameter substantially equal to the width of the end walls channels with said inner bottom and shelves beads in contact with said end walls.

10. A cabinet of the class described comprising a shell formed from a single piece of material substantially U-shaped in vertical cross section and including a back,

a top and a bottom, said shell top, back and bottom having at each end thereof an inwardly projecting flange and said top and bottom each having at its forward end a U-shaped channel, separate end walls, one at each end of the shell, each having at its forward corners inwardly projecting fingers respectively located in the shell top and bottom channels, said end walls each being provided at its forward end with a U-shaped channel formed of the said end walls, a forward flange extending toward one another and parallel with the shell back and an inwardly projecting flange from said forward flange, said end walls channels inwardly projecting flanges each having a plurality of semi-circular notches formed therein with said notches respectively in said flanges aligned with one another in sets, a plurality of shelves between the end walls each having a substantially circular bead at its forward end and respectively disposed in an aligned set of semi-circular notches, each shelf extending rearwardly and having a depending flange at its rear end in face contact with the shell back, said shell back having a plurality of lines of aligned hooks inwardly projecting therefrom with each line of hooks receiving a shelf depending flange, an inner bottom disposed between said cabinet ends and having a substantially circular head at its forward end disposed in the shell bottom channel and with said inner bottom having a depending flange in face contact with the shell back depending to the shell bottom, said inner bottom and shelves each having its lateral ends each formed at a substantially circular bead on the upper surface thereof and to a diameter substantially equal to the width of the end walls channels with said inner bottom and shelves beads in contact with said end walls, said shleves forward ends beads depending below its shelf to form an abutment, and a drawer on each shelf extending substantially from the shell back to the forward end of said shelves and inner bottom with said drawers each having an upwardly projecting finger for engagement with the shelves depending beads to prevent inadvertent removal of said drawers.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

